Chapter 60: Digging the corner of Shengxisi's wall (Asking for monthly tickets!)

At dusk, the sun set.

The three bell tolls of the Silver Pine Town church ended the prayer before nightfall, and the afterglow of the setting sun sprinkled on the red brick and bright tile roof, slowly lengthening the shadow of the spire cross on the ground.

Standing under the colorful stained-glass window, Father Ma Te quietly watched the believers walk away, then turned and went to the cellar in the church backyard under the gaze of a group of young monks and nuns.

This is where the church stores red wine, and the area is quite spacious, a full fifty or sixty square meters.

Ever since the Great Graveyard took over this church, the Great Demon King had arranged for his minions to dig a secret passage directly from the first layer of the labyrinth to this cellar, and designated this place as a secret meeting point.

Whenever dusk comes, Ma Te would come here under the pretext of studying scriptures, lock the door, and wait for the time of a candle.

Today was the same.

And unlike other days, just as he pushed open the rotten wooden door, he saw a young man sitting at the wooden table in the cellar, flipping through scriptures with a cross on them.

Ma Te placed the candlestick in his hand aside, bowed slightly in salute, his voice respectful as he said.

"Respected Great Demon King, may I ask what your instructions are?"

If the residents of Silver Pine Town saw this scene, I'm afraid everyone would be shocked, not daring to believe their eyes, ears, and mouths—

Such a handsome young man is actually the Demon King?

Father Ma Te must have made a mistake!

Luo Yan, while flipping through the *Holy Words* of the Shengxisi sect with interest, said in a conversational tone.

"Has a guy named Jack come here to see you?"

Father Ma Te nodded.

"I received him in the chapel."

Luo Yan flipped a page.

"How do you feel about him?"

Ma Te pondered for a while and answered meticulously.

"That person's eyes are full of worldly desires; I cannot see the two words 'piety.' He is quite respectful to me, but what he respects is not me personally, but my status, and you who stand behind me."

"That guy is indeed that kind of person, but there's nothing bad about that either."

Luo Yan wasn't trying to examine Jack's character, but wanted to see how Ma Te's mind had formed.

Now it seemed that this priest's development was quite good. Although he inherited part of the original body's personality, he didn't fall into the dead end of theological research like the latter, but was able to think about problems from a secular perspective.

This is very important.

Luo Yan closed the book in his hand, then took two round-bottom flasks and a slip of paper from his bosom, placed them on the pine table, and then exhorted in a very light voice.

"The green potion is a medicine to relieve decay; you only need to drink three drops a day. The transparent bottle is pine nut wood-flavored perfume, which can mask some bad odors; you decide the dosage yourself."

"As for this slip of paper, it's a new batch of goods I need you to purchase. After finishing the business, move them to the cellar, and then ensure the door is locked tight at night; I will arrange the rest."

The goods that needed to be purchased were mainly food, such as grain and bread.

These goods were very common in Silver Pine Town.

Especially during the harvest season, the price of grain was often pressed very low.

"Understood."

Ma Te nodded respectfully, took the medicine and the slip of paper together, and put them into his bosom.

"May I ask if you have any other instructions?"

"One more thing."

Luo Yan nodded, then pointed to the wooden box behind him.

"Open it."

Ma Te soon followed suit, opening the wooden box, and what was inside was a bundle of silk.

He was slightly stunned, a look of surprise appearing on his face, and he looked up at the Great Demon King.

"This is..."

"You can understand it as a special and expensive silk that can be used to make clothes," Luo Yan said casually, "I want you to help me inquire and see if anyone is interested in this thing."

Although it went through several twists and turns, the Great Graveyard's first textile factory was finally established, and this bundle of silk was the first product to come off the production line.

It is said that in order to make the product achieve the ideal effect, three little players squeezed an Earth Spider dry and almost broke their own waists.

Although Luo Yan only provided a bottle of medicine and opened his mouth, he didn't actually put in much effort, but he was quite supportive of the three little players' entrepreneurial plan.

It's true that there is money in the church's account book in Silver Pine Town, but most of the assets are farmland and real estate in Thunder City, and liquid funds only account for a very small part.

In order not to eat away at their assets, the Great Graveyard also had to set up a few profitable industries!

It's not very convenient to sell coal directly.

Let's start with high-value products!

Staring at the silk in his hand and pondering for a moment, Father Ma Te said thoughtfully.

"... I heard that Baron Gess of Silver Pine Town is keen on attending banquets in high society; that gentleman should be interested in this thing that can make him stand out at the banquet. If Sheriff Adelei presents it to the Baron as a gift... what do you think?"

Luo Yan didn't give an affirmative or negative answer, but returned the question to him.

"I have already given this thing to you; you decide how to use it specifically. Of course, I suggest you discuss it with Sheriff Adelei, including Jack in Thunder City... they are more familiar with the local situation than you or I."

After this period of adaptation, Ma Te, who was a ghoul, had gradually integrated into his current identity, and was even able to think about problems from the standpoint of "Father Ma Te" without the guidance of others.

This is a good start.

Luo Yan intended to let him continue to maintain it and further hand over specific affairs to him.

Regarding the Great Demon King's trust, Ma Te nodded slightly.

"Understood... I will do my best to handle this matter to your satisfaction."

"I believe you won't let me down," Luo Yan smiled faintly and continued, "My business is finished; what about you? Is there anything you need to report... or anything you need my help with?"

Ma Te nodded and opened his mouth truthfully.

"The church here is already on the right track, and the trivial matters have been settled by Sheriff Adelei's side. The only troublesome thing is one matter: as a ghoul, I cannot use holy-type spells, and for the prayers of the believers, I can only use the doctrines of Saint Cisi to prevaricate... but I'm afraid this is not a long-term solution."

Speaking of this, he paused, and continued with some difficulty.

"And then there is the issue of holy water... the production of holy water also relies on the power of holy light."

This is not just his distress.

It is also Sheriff Adelei's distress.

In this world, the church of Shengxisi is not just a church, but also plays the role of a hospital to a certain extent, responsible for treating fatal wounds that herbalists cannot heal.

Although the vast majority of poor people have no money to buy the church's services, there are also some wealthy free people and gentry in Silver Pine Town.

Another is adventurers.

Those with high income and high risk will also prioritize buying the church's services when injured, hoping to recover to the best state as soon as possible and get rid of physical pain.

Although Luo Yan had proven that sincere faith is not the only way to use magic, it still didn't change the fact that holy-type spells can restrain the undead.

This belongs to part of the rules.

Just like the fire formed by fire elements can ignite objects to produce real fire.

Even if he taught Ma Te how to use holy light, the latter would still reveal his flaws when actually using it... like his body accelerating decay or something.

Luo Yan pondered slightly and said.

"Holy light is not the only healing spell; I can teach you how to use healing spells. As for holy water... how much does this thing usually cost?"

Ma Te answered truthfully.

"500 silver coins."

500 silver coins!

Hearing this number, Luo Yan couldn't help but gasp.

500 silver coins can buy a set of sword and shield in a weapon shop in Lei Ming City; exchanged for equivalent copper coins, it can buy more than five thousand pieces of bread—that kind of big piece that is enough for a family to share!

This money is almost equivalent to the entire annual income of a tenant farmer working on a lord's land.

And considering the cost of renting land, daily living expenses, various taxes, and fluctuations in grain prices, the vast majority of farmers can't save much money at all throughout the year.

No wonder Kelisi always held a trace of hostility toward nobles, and even moved to kill for money and life because she misunderstood that he was a noble.

This guy is worth sympathizing with, but Luo Yan still couldn't help but want to complain: the one who set the rules is Shengxisi, the one who collects the money is the church... not to mention whether hatred is useful, you girl just hating nobles has no use?

Picking the soft persimmon, right!

This cognition is going to be harvested wherever it is.

"Too expensive," Luo Yan shook his head, then said, "Tell the believers who need to handle funerals, just say... their good intentions have been accepted by Shengxisi, and they should keep the money for themselves."

"As for those guys who have too much money and insist on buying... you go to the well and get some water, treat it as holy water, and then use 'Soul Release' to let the deceased's soul out of the body."

Anyway, holy water is sprinkled on the corpse; whether it is holy water or not, the dead cannot sit up and speak.

Besides holy light, low-level undead spells can also release a person's soul from the flesh that has just begun to decay, letting it go where it should go according to its faith... although it is based on principles completely different from holy-type spells.

Considering that undead spells are not very suitable for public display.

After the "funeral" is over, Father Ma Te can make up for it.

As for whether this counts as deception?

That must count!

However, these people even believe in things like "500 silver coins can buy a good reincarnation," Luo Yan felt they might as well believe he is Qin Shi Huang, after all, he can really seal them as ghost soldiers.

Reality is just that cruel.

Holy water can only keep the corpse from becoming undead; it cannot let the deceased's soul have a good reincarnation at all!

This is not Luo Yan's subjective speculation, but it is written in the *Holy Words*—

"Water blessed by the divine can allow the deceased to obtain eternal peace."

As for reincarnation or something... that thing is purely people's misunderstanding, or rather, unrealistic wishes.

Whether it is the surface or the Netherworld, reincarnation is based on soul level.

If you want to upgrade, if you don't take the evil path, you can only please the gods you believe in.

On the side of Demon God Bayeli, becoming an acolyte who preaches and contributes faith is enough.

Most humans living in the Netherworld take this path, dedicating their lives to the Demon God, and after death, they don't need to be resurrected as undead; their souls enter the reincarnation pool, and they will be high-level demons in their next life.

Luo Yan doesn't know much about the situation on the surface.

But referring to the Netherworld, high-level demons should correspond to knights or nobles?

Acolytes correspond to priests.

I think as long as you dedicate your life to Shengxisi, there is still great hope for reincarnation into a noble family in the next life.

As for wanting to buy a rich second-generation start with five hundred silver coins, it is still a bit of a daydream.

Even players of *Catastrophe OL* know that Netherworld currency cannot buy soul levels.

Want to upgrade?

That requires "contribution"!

Hearing the Great Demon King's instructions, Ma Te was slightly stunned, and the expression on his face was hesitant.

Using well water to replace holy water is a bit too exaggerated.

"This... can it work?"

Luo Yan smiled faintly.

"Holy water is originally water that has been blessed; as for whether it has been blessed... except for yourself, who can expose you?"

Pausing for a moment, he continued.

"Also... you can release the news, just say that there is a saint in Silver Pine Town who has been favored by Saint Cisi, and the... amulet he made can also ensure that the corpse does not become undead."

"This amulet is very cheap, only needing 10 silver coins, and it's not just for the dead; the living can also wear it, and adventurers are strongly recommended... it can be worn by anyone."

"Of course, it only works on the dead."

This thing is less of an amulet and more of a stone engraved with a "Soul Release" magic array.

After the wearer dies, as long as there is no strong obsession, the soul will naturally be released from the body.

As for being summoned as a skeleton soldier by a necromancer, that's none of his business.

This thing is actually the same path as holy water, just one is sprinkled and one is used.

Little demons are very good at making this thing.

He had said he would help them solve the food crisis, and in a sense, this could be considered fulfilling his promise.

Ma Te seriously noted down the Great Demon King's instructions, then said.

"This 'saint'... what is his name?"

Luo Yan pondered the wording for a long time and spent two minutes compiling the outline of the whole story.

"He is an orphan, born having lost his parents."

"He was born in the hottest cave of the Ten Thousand Swords Mountain Range, and only the erupting magma witnessed the baby's cry."

"Thanks to the protection of the gods, he was fortunate enough to survive."

"An elderly priest brought him home and raised him to adulthood..."

The preface of the story doesn't need too much; too much would be gilding the lily, which is not conducive to people's word-of-mouth. As for the omissions in the details, naturally, there will be bards to make up for him.

All he needs to do is give this story a start, and then ensure that the amulet really works.

"He has no name."

"Those who know him affectionately call him—"

"Yan Wang." ===== CHAPTER 61 =====